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Wednesday, May 16, 2018

Meeting Details: We'll be meeting on Thursday, June 14th at Tessa's house.Discussion Questions:1) Did you enjoy the book? Why or why not?2) The story is told as a first person narrative. How do you react to Saul? Do your attitudes to
him change during the novel, and if so, what brings about these changes?3) To which character(s) in the novel, other than Saul, do you react most strongly? Reflect on
your reactions and the possible reasons for them4) The novel vividly describes the effects on Saul when he
is sent to a residential school: “I read once that there are holes in the universe that swallow all light, all bodies. St.
Jerome’s took all the light from my world”(43) How did reading the novel
change your understanding of the residential school
system and its lasting effects?5) “One who loves does not brandish fear or require it” (26)
What insights into Aboriginal spirituality do you gain from the novel? “Where is God now, then?” I asked (92) Where do you find God in this story?6) Richard Wagamese writes poetically about hockey,
describing it as the “snow white stage”. What does
hockey mean to Saul? Are all his hockey experiences
positive? 7) Racism is a very grim reality for Saul. Give a few examples of racism in the book - how does Saul react to this racism? While
it is tempting to believe that these attitudes are no longer prevalent, examples can be found
in many places. Reflect on examples of stereotyping or racism that you have experienced
directly, have heard about from friends, or have witnessed in the media or other sources.8) Richard Wagamese
is an accomplished
storyteller who has
performed across the
country. Was there one example of excellent story-telling in the book that you found particularly effective?9) In reading Indian Horse, what did you learn about
Indigenous peoples in Canada that you did not
know before? 10) “They scooped out our insides, Saul. We are not responsible for that. We are not
responsible for what happened to us. None of us are,” Fred said. “But our healing – that’s up
to us.” (210) What you do think "reconciliation" means? How can we as individuals, Christians and as Canadians, be part
of the healing?11) What role does redemption play in Indian Horse? The book begins with the idea of storytelling: “They say I can’t understand where I’m going if I don’t understand where I’ve been . . .”(2) How does story-telling play a role in redemption?12) Richard Wagamese has said that Indian Horse “…was a story clamoring to be told in a way that
was empowering – that was not preachy, threatening or guilt inducing.” Do you feel Indian Horse
is, in fact, a story told in a way that is empowering and not preachy, threatening or guilt
inducing? Why or why not?13) Would would recommend this book? To whom and why or why not?Many of the questions taken from www.amnestybookclub.ca(which also has some good background info about the book, if you're interested) and http://manitouconference.ca/img/Gillian-Indian-Horse.pdf

Menu: Ma's First Rule is Food.Martha Kelly believes in feeding growing boys well... the food's not fancy, but it's simple stick-to-your ribs fare made with what's locally available. Her husband says about her: "Ma's first rule is food. She cooks up a storm too." And every serious hockey player knows that a meal should have as many parts as a hockey game!First Period:Potato, Leek and Bacon SoupBannockSecond Period:Fried fishFried onions and potatoesBaked beans (canned is fine!)Fresh breadPicklesThird Period:Blueberry CobblerIce CreamOvertime: Chocolate BrowniesCoffee/tea

Reminder: Please take a few minutes to check out our book choices for Sept-December (posted below) so that we can choose books at the June meeting.

Here are some choices for Sept-December... we'll decide on these books at our June meeting so if you're unable to attend, please take a minute to pop into the comments and share your preferences. If you have another book you'd like to suggest, please add it to the comments so that we can check it out in advance. Generally speaking, we've found that last minute impulse decisions are often duds... and we get better books when we all do a little bit of homework. I've included links so that you can easily check out all these titles and have an informed opinion.

Saturday, May 12, 2018

Meeting on Tuesday, May 15 at Tamara's house (address in email). Come anytime after 7:30, with discussion to start at 8:00

Discussion Questions - to come...

Menu - British Eats!
Ada spends a lot of time in the book marvelling over the variety of good food that Susan has in her home - and the fresh food. So, our theme will be "British Eats", with some fresh additiions. Some of the ideas use the fried sausage and eggs from their breakfasts, or are in honour of their Christmas dinner with Roast Goose...Or feel free to add your own favourite British dish!!!

Tuesday, May 1, 2018

I enjoyed Eden Robinson's Monkey Beach, so I was looking forward to this book too.

Book Summary: Shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize: With striking originality and precision, Eden Robinson, the author of the classic Monkey Beach and winner of the Writers’ Trust of Canada Fellowship, blends humor with heartbreak in this compelling coming-of-age novel. Everyday teen existence meets indigenous beliefs, crazy family dynamics, and cannibalistic river otters . . . The exciting first novel in her trickster trilogy. Everyone knows a guy like Jared: the burnout kid in high school who sells weed cookies and has a scary mom who's often wasted and wielding some kind of weapon. Jared does smoke and drink too much, and he does make the best cookies in town, and his mom is a mess, but he's also a kid who has an immense capacity for compassion and an impulse to watch over people more than twice his age, and he can't rely on anyone for consistent love and support, except for his flatulent pit bull, Baby Killer (he calls her Baby)--and now she's dead. Jared can't count on his mom to stay sober and stick around to take care of him. He can't rely on his dad to pay the bills and support his new wife and step-daughter. Jared is only sixteen but feels like he is the one who must stabilize his family's life, even look out for his elderly neighbours. But he struggles to keep everything afloat...and sometimes he blacks out. And he puzzles over why his maternal grandmother has never liked him, why she says he's the son of a trickster, that he isn't human. Mind you, ravens speak to him--even when he's not stoned. You think you know Jared, but you don't.My Thoughts: I enjoyed Monkey Beach, but I LOVED Son of a Trickster! You can tell that Eden Robinson has really upper her game and her writing is not just lush and cinematic, like it was in Monkey Beach, but her pacing and plot is much tighter and this results in a quickly paced, gripping novel of heart-break, love and loss. Her main character, 16 yr old Jared, is the kind of cliche that everyone loves to rail against: scraping by academically, smoking and drinking too much, dealing drugs, socially marginalized, living from hand to mouth and surrounded by an incredibly dysfunctional family. It's so easy to blame a kid like that - and his family/community for producing him, but Robinson lets us in the backdoor to view his life from the inside and we see a teenager of incredible resilience, strength and compassion. We see a kid who defies expectation at every turn and eventually finds courage and wisdom IN his culture, rather than despite it. As Eden Robinson describes it: You think you know Jared, but you don't.Equally compelling is Jared's new friend, Sarah, who is herself broken and hurting. Sarah is a complex character who is alternately gentle and brutal; she pushed people away and then tenderly holds them close. Jared is both drawn to her and repelled by her as well - and as he gets to know her, and he lets her into his own life, its mesmerizing to watch these two hurting kids find strength and courage in each other.

An excellently written novel that will take you on a roller coaster ride of emotions and leave you eager for the next installment of this planned trilogy. I'll be first in line for the next book!

Monday, April 2, 2018

Starters:
Olives (pg. 32) "Stan rolls an olive around in his mouth before chewing: it's a long time since he's had an olive. The taste is distracting. He should be more alert, because naturally they're being scrutinized..."

Avocado with shrimp appetizer (pg. 222) "She (Charmaine) returns to the dining room. Ed stands up, holds her chair for her. The avocado with shrimp appetizer is in place."

Spinach salad (pg. 97)Main:Chicken dumplings (pg. 63) "Positron food is excellent, because if the cooking team orders up crap for you, you'll dish out the crap to them the next month to get even. Works like a charm: it's amazing how many painstaking chefs have sprung into being. Today it's chicken dumplings, one of his favourites."

Shepherd's pie (pg. 97) "In the evening, after four hours of towel-folding and the communal dinner - shepherd's pie, spinach salad, raspberry mousse - Charmaine joins the knitting circle in the main room of the woman's wing."

Dessert:
Raspberry mouse (pg. 97)

Plum crumble with cream (pg. 138) "She picks up her helping of plum crumble in its sturdy pressed-glass dish. There's cream added, from Positron's own cows; not that she's ever seen those cows either."

Book Summary: Winner of the 2014 Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction! This is Thomas King’s first literary novel in 15 years and follows on the success of the award-winning and bestsellingThe Inconvenient Indian and his belovedGreen Grass, Running WaterandTruth and Bright Water, both of which continue to be taught in Canadian schools and universities.Green Grass, Running Wateris widely considered a contemporary Canadian classic.

In The Back of the Turtle, Gabriel returns to Smoke River, the reserve where his mother grew up and to which she returned with Gabriel’s sister. The reserve is deserted after an environmental disaster killed the population, including Gabriel’s family, and the wildlife. Gabriel, a brilliant scientist working for Domidion, created GreenSweep, and indirectly led to the crisis. Now he has come to see the damage and to kill himself in the sea. But as he prepares to let the water take him, he sees a young girl in the waves. Plunging in, he saves her, and soon is saving others. Who are these people with their long black hair and almond eyes who have fallen from the sky?

Filled with brilliant characters, trademark wit, wordplay and a thorough knowledge of native myth and story-telling, this novel is a masterpiece by one of our most important writers.

My Thoughts: I was instantly hooked by this novel and by the time I finished it, I couldn't wait to begin it again. Thomas King has a real talent for character - and an amazing capacity for compassion and humor. Gabriel thinks himself the villain in this tale of environmental destruction and is determined to drown himself in the sea, and yet King writes him as an anguished, reluctant hero and you can't help but the feel compassion for him and urge him to fight for life. Dorian Asher is more likely the villain in this disaster, as he's the powerful, profit hungry CEO of Domidion, but he doesn't see himself this way at all - as as King writes him as a man driven by his appetites and desires, crippled by health concerns and gob-smacked by his wife's affair and desire for a divorce - and I can't help but to feel a deep compassion for this shallow, misguided man and his rich, but empty life.

Mara, Crispin and Sonny are truly some of the victims of this environmental crisis, but they refuse to see themselves this way, and readers won't see this either. They're survivors, hope-rs, dreamers and eventually, doers, as the ocean, the reserve and the village begin to live, grow and thrive again.

A powerful book that shows us meaningful reconciliation in action - full of intriguing characters, environmental caution, cultural hopefulness and genuine compassion, all told with Thomas King's deft comedic touch. An absolute winner!

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

"The Heart Goes Last" book clubDate: Thursday April 5, 2018Time: 7:30 pm, discussion to start 8:00 pmLocation: Sherrie's homeDiscussion Questions:1. Did you enjoy the book? Why or why not?2. If you were in Stan and Charmaine’s situation, would you sign up for the Positron Project?

3. What is the significance of Charmaine’s memories of Grandma Win and her cheerful aphorisms?

4. Do you think society could actually break down to the point that it does in the novel? Why or why not?

5. Bright colors figure into many descriptions in the novel, and act as a counterpoint to the drab quality of daily life in Positron. Stan and Charmaine’s lockers are pink and green; the Alternates’ lockers are purple and red; prison uniforms are orange; the knitted bears are blue. Do you think the colors assigned to the various objects are intentional or incidental?

6. How did your attitudes toward Stan and Charmaine change over the course of the novel?7. The novel’s title has surprising significance. When it was revealed, did you find it a clever twist or macabre and disturbing?

8. Charmaine is placed in an impossible situation when she discovers Stan on the gurney. Did she make the right choice? What would you have done?

9. No one is who he or she seems to be in Consilience. Did the shifting identities of characters make you wonder what their previous lives had been like before they came to Consilience? Would they have been better off "outside the walls"?

10. Could the Positron Project ever be a viable solution to solving societal upheaval?11. The author is known for embracing emerging technologies, but in this work medical science and robotics are used in sinister and manipulative ways. In this sense is The Heart Goes Last a cautionary tale?

12. "The world is all before you," says Jocelyn at the close of the novel. How do you think Charmaine will adjust to freedom?13. Would you recommend this book to others?Menu to follow

Thursday, March 1, 2018

This month's read focuses heavily on the reality of racism, both historically, and today: Injun by Jordan Abel.Book Summary: Award-winning Nisga'a poet Jordan Abel's third collection, Injun, is a long poem about racism and the representation of indigenous peoples. Composed of text found in western novels published between 1840 and 1950 - the heyday of pulp publishing and a period of unfettered colonialism in North America -Injun then uses erasure, pastiche, and a focused poetics to create a visually striking response to the western genre.After compiling the online text of 91 of these now public-domain novels into one gargantuan document, Abel used his word processor's Find" function to search for the word "injun." The 509 results were used as a study in context: How was this word deployed? What surrounded it? What was left over once that word was removed? Abel then cut up the sentences into clusters of three to five words and rearranged them into the long poem that is Injun. The book contains the poem as well as peripheral material that will help the reader to replicate, intuitively, some of the conceptual processes that went into composing the poem.

Though it has been phased out of use in our "post-racial" society, the word "injun" is peppered throughout pulp western novels. Injun retraces, defaces, and effaces the use of this word as a colonial and racial marker. While the subject matter of the source text is clearly problematic, the textual explorations in Injun help to destabilize the colonial image of the "Indian" in the source novels, the western genre as a whole, and the Western canon."My Thoughts: I wouldn't really describe this book as a "fun" read, and I wouldn't recommend that you read it in a sitting. Instead, this collection needs to be read in the context of Jordan Abel's exploration of language, and in bite-sized portions. I got this book last October, and I've been dipping in and reading bits once a week or so since then. Every time I visit this collection, I notice something new or I'm disturbed by something that I didn't see before. Here's how the main poem "Injun" begins:

a)
he played injun in gods country
where boys proved themselves clean
dumb beasts who could cut fire
out of the whitest1 sand
he played english across the trail
where girls turned plum wild
garlic and strained words
through the window of night
he spoke through numb lips and
breathed frontier2

In the second half of the collection, subtitled "Notes" Jordan Abel explores some of the other words that show up frequently in western novels. He cuts out the line containing that word and lines up the sentences on the page so that the key word stands out. When you read through the sentences, you get a strong sense of how that word is used, and what kind of meaning it holds. In the case of the following example, you could easily replace the word "whitest" with "best" in the same way the word "injun" is often coupled with "dirty"The neatest thing about reading this collection is imagining the writing of it - realizing that Abel is not writing in his own words, but that he's cutting apart novels and piecing them together in bits of his own... he literally deconstructs literature and recreates his own art from the ruins. And what emerges is no longer the stereotyped "dead Injun" of western novels, but an alive, vibrant and rebellious nation of people who won't be defeated.Although not really aimed at the average reader, I would recommend this challenging, "cutting" edge collection for those who don't mind some poetry that comes in impressions and big pictures, as opposed to poetry that can be analysed word by word. I didn't understand this whole work, but that's ok - every time I go back to it, I'm challenged anew.

The Animals by Christian Kiefer - Bill Reed manages a wildlife sanctuary in rural Idaho, caring for injured animals raptors, a wolf, and his beloved bear, Majer, among them that are unable to survive in the wild. Seemingly rid of his troubled past, Bill hopes to marry the local veterinarian and live a quiet life together, the promise of which is threatened when a childhood friend is released from prison. Suddenly forced to confront the secrets of his criminal youth, Bill battles fiercely to preserve the shelter that protects these wounded animals and to keep hidden his turbulent, even dangerous, history. Alternating between past and present, Christian Kiefer contrasts the wreckage of Bill's crime-ridden years in Reno, Nevada, with the elusive promise of a peaceful future. In finely sculpted prose imaginatively at odds with the harsh, volatile world Kiefer evokes, The Animals builds powerfully toward the revelation of Bill s defining betrayal and the drastic lengths Bill goes to in order to escape the consequences.

Life Itself - a memoir by Roger Ebert - Roger Ebert is the best-known film critic of our time. He has been reviewing films for theChicago Sun-Timessince 1967, and was the first film critic ever to win a Pulitzer Prize. He has appeared on television for four decades, including twenty-three years as cohost ofSiskel & Ebert at the Movies.

In 2006, complications from thyroid cancer treatment resulted in the loss of his ability to eat, drink, or speak. But with the loss of his voice, Ebert has only become a more prolific and influential writer. And now, for the first time, he tells the full, dramatic story of his life and career.Roger Ebert's journalism carried him on a path far from his nearly idyllic childhood in Urbana, Illinois. It is a journey that began as a reporter for his local daily, and took him to Chicago, where he was unexpectedly given the job of film critic for the Sun-Times, launching a lifetime's adventures. In this candid, personal history, Ebert chronicles it all: his loves, losses, and obsessions; his struggle and recovery from alcoholism; his marriage; his politics; and his spiritual beliefs. He writes about his years at the Sun-Times, his colorful newspaper friends, and his life-changing collaboration with Gene Siskel. He remembers his friendships with Studs Terkel, Mike Royko, Oprah Winfrey, and Russ Meyer (for whom he wrote Beyond the Valley of the Dolls and an ill-fated Sex Pistols movie). He shares his insights into movie stars and directors like John Wayne, Werner Herzog, and Martin Scorsese.

This is a story that only Roger Ebert could tell. Filled with the same deep insight, dry wit, and sharp observations that his readers have long cherished, this is more than a memoir-it is a singular, warm-hearted, inspiring look at life itself. "I believe that if, at the end, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do. To make others less happy is a crime. To make ourselves unhappy is where all crime starts. We must try to contribute joy to the world. That is true no matter what our problems, our health, our circumstances. We must try. I didn't always know this, and am happy I lived long enough to find it out." -from LIFE ITSELF

Thursday, February 1, 2018

This month I've got another nonfiction title: Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death and Hard Truths in a Northern City by Tanya TalagaBook Summary: In 1966, twelve-year-old Chanie Wenjack froze to death on the railway tracks after running away from residential school. An inquest was called and four recommendations were made to prevent another tragedy. None of those recommendations were applied.

More than a quarter of a century later, from 2000 to 2011, seven Indigenous high school students died in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The seven were hundreds of miles away from their families, forced to leave home and live in a foreign and unwelcoming city. Five were found dead in the rivers surrounding Lake Superior, below a sacred Indigenous site. Jordan Wabasse, a gentle boy and star hockey player, disappeared into the minus twenty degrees Celsius night. The body of celebrated artist Norval Morrisseau’s grandson, Kyle, was pulled from a river, as was Curran Strang’s. Robyn Harper died in her boarding-house hallway and Paul Panacheese inexplicably collapsed on his kitchen floor. Reggie Bushie’s death finally prompted an inquest, seven years after the discovery of Jethro Anderson, the first boy whose body was found in the water.

Using a sweeping narrative focusing on the lives of the students, award-winning investigative journalist Tanya Talaga delves into the history of this small northern city that has come to manifest Canada’s long struggle with human rights violations against Indigenous communities. - from amazon.ca

My thoughts: This books was a gut-wrenching, heart-breaking reality check showing how racism is still very much alive and thriving in Canada today. Tanya Talaga is a journalist with roots in Northern Ontario and working in Toronto. She travels to Thunder Bay with a story in mind - wondering how to mobilize local First Nations so that they participate in federal elections - and discovers that her interview attempts fall flat on an audience who simply want to talk about the local high school students who've drowned in the river. Local First Nations leaders are trying to raise alarm bells, and no one's listening. Initially, Talaga is skeptical too. But she promises to listen, do her research and if there's a story here, she promises to tell it.

What she shares are the lives of 7 young people who died in mysterious, unexplained and poorly investigated ways. She shares the stories of their families, who have to live with heartbreak and unanswered questions. She shared the pain of northern communities who have been hurt, ignored, side-lined and forgotten - not just once or twice, but for generations. I would consider this book a must-read for all Canadians. Genuine reconciliation requires knowledge and compassion, and then action. Several times, this book points out in very clear ways the role of an uncaring public: if we're not interested and don't care, then racists can get away with racist attitudes, remarks and actions; then police services can get away with hasty, inconclusive answers; then politicians can get away with big talk and small action. All of these young people were living far away from their communities, family and friends - essentially, they were orphans. And rather than caring for the vulnerable: the young, the orphans and the poor, the city of Thunder Bay, Ontarians and Canadians turned a blind eye to their suffering and the deaths and preferred easy answers over hard truths. Now, Tanya Talaga is calling on us all to really see these young people and their families. To look and not turn away. And the truth is a painful one that requires action.

Thursday, January 4, 2018

We're getting together at Marion's house on Thursday, January 11th at 7:30 pm, with discussion to begin at 8 pm.

Discussion Questions:1. Did you like the book? Why or why not?

2. Can you see yourself in Nabeel's passion for the LORD? 3. Nabeel's parents were faced with inconsistencies of the Quran and what they understood from their Hadiths yet those chose to overlook and dismiss them. Would we do the same? Are we so steeped in tradition that we don't think critically? Can we fall into it?4. Nabeel has a best friend in David. Why do they get along so well, what is it about their friendship that makes it last?5. Nabeel explains the difference between the muslims born in America and the ones who immigrated. What are the key differences? Why is this so important? How does it affect Nabeel's family? extended family?6. Nabeel at one point says that it would have been better for his parents if he had died rather than tell them he was now a Christian. Why does he say this?7. David arranges for Nabeel and his father to meet with experts on the death of Jesus, how is this a turning point for Nabeel?8. Did you have preconceived ideas about Muslim faith/life? What were they? are they confirmed or changed by this book?9. How does Nabeel account for the very great differences in muslim faith/practice, from extremism to a 'religion of peace'10. In chapter 18 it talks about honour-shame. What is this? what are the practical implications?11. What affect did 9/11 have on Nabeel?

12. Would you recommend the book? Why or why not?

Menu: "Iftar"

While I don't feel it necessary to fast in preparation for our meeting, lets feast! Some suggestions gleaned from people's favorite Iftar memories